Former President Donald Trump will appear at a fund-raiser for Representative Lee Zeldin, the Republican and Conservative Parties’ nominee for governor of New York, on Sunday in Deal, N.J.
The Chera family is hosting the event, according to an invitation. Stanley Chera, a New York City real estate titan and friend of the former president, owned a residence in Deal, on the New Jersey shore. Mr. Chera died of Covid-19 in 2020.
Couples who give or raise $100,000 for Mr. Zeldin’s campaign will be afforded event chair recognition, a photo with the former president, and a V.I.P. reception. For $25,000, a couple can attend the V.I.P. reception and have their picture taken with Mr. Trump. Individuals making a $5,000 contribution can attend the V.I.P. reception, and the cost to attend the general reception is $1,000.
Mr. Zeldin was one of the former president’s most zealous supporters in Congress, defending him through two impeachment hearings and, hours after the insurrection at the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, voting to object to certification of the 2020 election in two states Mr. Trump lost.
Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida was to headline a fund-raiser for Mr. Zeldin on Sunday in Oyster Bay, but pulled out because of an “unforeseen tragedy,” a spokeswoman for Mr. Zeldin’s campaign told The New York Post. She said a fund-raiser with the Florida governor, who is up for re-election in November and is seen as a potential Republican candidate for president, would be rescheduled. Sunday’s event went ahead without Mr. DeSantis. Katie Vincentz, the spokeswoman, did not reply to an email seeking further details.
Mr. Zeldin, who was elected to represent New York’s First Congressional District in 2014 and subsequently re-elected three times, trails his opponent, Gov. Kathy Hochul, by a wide margin, according to recent polls. A WNYT-TV/SurveyUSA poll conducted between Aug. 17 and Aug. 21 put the governor comfortably ahead of her challenger, 55 percent to 31 percent. Polls conducted in July put Ms. Hochul ahead of Mr. Zeldin by 16 and 14 percentage points. The website
RealClearPolitics.com ranks the race as “safe” and “likely” for the Democratic candidate.
New York has more than twice as many registered Democratic as Republican voters, and Democrats have held the governor’s mansion since 2007.
Mr. Zeldin easily defeated three challengers in the Republican Party’s Aug. 23 primary. Former Vice President Mike Pence has endorsed his candidacy.
Ms. Hochul, the former lieutenant governor and first woman to serve as New York’s governor, succeeded Andrew M. Cuomo last year, following his resignation in the wake of numerous reports of sexual harassment.
The candidates have agreed to a televised debate on PIX11. Mr. Zeldin has called for at least five debates to be held across the state.
